What do we know about the Vikings now?

Posted on 21 Mar 2014

University of Birmingham historian Dr Chris Callow is curating a series of films as part of the British Museum’s ‘Vikings: Life and Legend’ exhibition.

The main exhibition runs from March 6 until June 22 and features archaeological discoveries never before seen in the UK. It includes personal objects such as jewellery, amulets and religious images and its centrepiece is the remains of a 37 metre long warship, known as Roskilde 6, dating from about 1025. Developed alongside the National Museum of Denmark and the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin the exhibition focuses on the core Viking age from the late 8th century until the early 11th century and showcases new finds which are changing understanding of the nature of Viking identity.

Dr Callow said of the British Museum exhibition: “It really is a landmark exhibition. There hasn’t been anything in the UK on this scale since an exhibition in 1980. There have been so many more archaeological finds, not just in the UK but across the rest of Europe and Scandinavia, and this exhibition brings all these new discoveries to us. Visitors to the exhibition will get a sense of just how incredible the Viking expansion was and how enduring some of the contacts were between Scandinavia and the rest of the world.”

Dr Callow is co-organiser of the 10th annual Midlands Viking Symposium, to be held at the University of Birmingham on April 26. Run jointly with the Universities of Nottingham and Leicester, its aim is to present new aspects of academic research, new ideas and discoveries to a wider audience. Six scholars from a variety of universities will discuss their research on a wide variety of aspects of Viking society.

Dr Chris Callow is a lecturer in Medieval History at the University of Birmingham. His research focuses on the Vikings and medieval Icelandic society.

For a full list of events in the ‘Vikings: Life and Legend’ exhibition and to book tickets please visit the British Museum website.

The 10th annual Midlands Viking Symposium takes place on Saturday April 26 10am-5pm at the Barber Institute of Fine Arts at the University of Birmingham. The Midlands Viking Symposium is priced at £30 per person which includes lunch and refreshments. University of Birmingham staff and students can register for a discounted ticket at £15. To book please visit the University of Birmingham website and complete the form.

Notes to editors:

For further information please contact Faye Jackson at the University of Birmingham Press Office 0121 414 6029.